Tumor suppression with a combination of alpha-difluoromethyl ornithine and interferon

alpha-Difluoromethyl ornithine and mouse type 1 interferon, when administered simultaneously, were highly toxic to B16 melanoma cells in culture. Oral administration of alpha-difluoromethyl ornithine suppressed B16 melanoma development in mice 85 percent whereas interferon given subcutaneously inhibited tumor growth only 24 percent. Total or near total suppression of tumor growth was observed in mice receiving both treatments.     

Microfluidic bubble logic

We demonstrate universal computation in an all-fluidic two-phase microfluidic system. Nonlinearity is introduced into an otherwise linear, reversible, low-Reynolds number flow via bubble-to-bubble hydrodynamic interactions. A bubble traveling in a channel represents a bit, providing us with the capability to simultaneously transport materials and perform logical control operations. We demonstrate bubble logic AND/OR/NOT gates, a toggle flip-flop, a ripple counter, timing restoration, a ring oscillator, and an electro-bubble modulator. These show the nonlinearity, gain, bistability, synchronization, cascadability, feedback, and programmability required for scalable universal computation. With increasing complexity in large-scale microfluidic processors, bubble logic provides an on-chip process control mechanism integrating chemistry and computation.     

Concomitant production of lipase, protease and enterocin by Enterococcus faecium NCIM5363 and Enterococcus durans NCIM5427 isolated from fish processing waste

Enterococci are widely distributed in the environment ranging from foods to humans and are gaining industrial importance due to their technological traits. In the present study, enterococci (Enterococcus faecium NCIM5363 (EF-63) and Enterococcus durans NCIM5427 (ED-27)) which are native to fish processing waste with an ability to produce lipase, protease and enterocin concomitantly were characterised. Lipase assay was performed by titrimetry and protease activity and was estimated using haemoglobin and casein as substrates in the presence of buffers at acidic, basic and neutral pH. Furthermore, enterocin produced by the isolates was characterised. Enterocin was also checked for its stability at different pH, temperature and proteolytic enzymes. Lipase production was found to be 22 and 10 U/ml in the absence of tributryin and increased to 40 and 24 U/ml in its presence for EF-63 and ED-27, respectively, indicating that the lipase produced is substrate dependent. Protease production was confirmed by protease assay, and the protease produced showed more affinity towards the acidic substrate. Enterocin produced was stable at low pH (2 to 3) and high temperature (121°C, 15 min) and had a molecular weight of approximately 6 kDa. It exhibited antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative food-borne pathogens. Proteinase K inactivated enterocin completely, whereas trypsin did not. Novelty of this work lies in the immense industrial importance these cultures hold as they are capable of producing lipase, protease and enterocin apart from being useful in recovering proteins and lipids from fish processing wastes.     

Involvement of mammalian Mus81 in genome integrity and tumor suppression

Mus81-Eme1 endonuclease has been implicated in the rescue of stalled replication forks and the resolution of meiotic recombination intermediates in yeast. We used gene targeting to study the physiological requirements of Mus81 in mammals. Mus81-/- mice are viable and fertile, which indicates that mammalian Mus81 is not essential for recombination processes associated with meiosis. Mus81-deficient mice and cells were hypersensitive to the DNA cross-linking agent mitomycin C but not to gamma-irradiation. Remarkably, both homozygous Mus81-/- and heterozygous Mus81+/- mice exhibited a similar susceptibility to spontaneous chromosomal damage and a profound and equivalent predisposition to lymphomas and other cancers. These studies demonstrate a critical role for the proper biallelic expression of the mammalian Mus81 in the maintenance of genomic integrity and tumor suppression.     

Floral Diversity and Distribution in the High Altitude Cold Desert of Ladakh,India

This study deals with the floral diversity and distribution patterns in plant species in relation to environmental gradients in the high altitude cold desert of Ladakh, India. An extensive literature survey and field explorations were made across the different parts of Ladakh in order to create a compilation of vascular plant species. For the quantification of vegetation, a total of eight habitat types were identified and sampled using the point intercept method. In all, 647 species of vascular plants belonging to 58 families and 243 genera were documented. Asteraceae (89 species), Poaceae (66 species), Brassicaceae (54 species), and Fabaceae (43 species) were the dominant families. Astragalus was the most dominant genus as it obtained 24 species, followed by Polygonum (18 species), Artemisia (15 species), and Potentilla (14 species). Among the habitats, riverine beds contained the highest frequency of plant species, followed by narrow gorges and tablelands. The crags and ridges had the lowest frequency of plants. Relatively high water and moisture availability may be the cause of the high frequency of plant species in riverine beds and narrow gorges. The vegetation composition was influenced by elevation; however, the intensity of change reduced at >4500-m elevation. The conservation and management of high altitude cold desert vegetation are discussed based on field observations and findings.     

Development and Characterization of Calcium-Alginate Beads of Apigenin: In Vitro Antitumor,Antibacterial, and Antioxidant Activities

The objective of this work was to develop sustained-release Ca-alginate beads of apigenin using sodium alginate, a natural polysaccharide. Six batches were prepared by applying the ionotropic gelation technique, wherein calcium chloride was used as a crosslinking agent. The beads were evaluated for particle size, drug loading, percentage yield, and in vitro drug release. Particle size was found to decrease, and drug entrapment efficiency was enhanced with an increase in the polymer concentration. The dissolution study showed sustained drug release from the apigenin-loaded alginate beads with an increase in the polymer proportion. Based on the dissolution profiles, BD6 formulation was optimized and characterized for FTIR, DSC, XRD, and SEM, results of which indicated successful development of apigenin-loaded Ca alginate beads. MTT assay demonstrated a potential anticancer effect against the breast cancer MCF-7 cell lines. The antimicrobial activity exhibited effective inhibition in the bacterial and fungal growth rate. The DPPH measurement revealed that the formulation had substantial antioxidant activity, with EC50 value slightly lowered compared to pure apigenin. A stability study demonstrated that the BD6 was stable with similar (f2) drug release profiles in harsh condition. In conclusion, alginate-based beads could be used for sustaining the drug release of poorly water-soluble apigenin while also improving in vitro antitumor, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activity.     

Leveraging the Antibacterial Properties of Knitted Fabrics by Admixture of Polyester-Silver Nanocomposite Fibres

Leveraging the antibacterial properties of polyester-cotton knitted fabrics has been attempted in this research by admixture of small proportion of polyester-silver nanocomposite fibres. Polyester-cotton (50:50) yarns were spun by mixing 10, 20 and 30 % (wt.%) polyester-silver nanocomposite fibres with normal polyester fibres so that overall proportion of polyester fibre becomes 50 %. The proportion of cotton fibre was constant (50 %) in all the yarns. Three parameters, namely blend proportion (wt.%) of nanocomposite fibres, yarn count and knitting machine gauge were varied, each at three levels, for producing 27 knitted fabrics. Polyester-cotton knitted fabrics prepared from polyester-silver nanocomposite fibres showed equally good antibacterial activity (65-99 %) against both S. aureus and E. coli bacteria. Antibacterial properties were enhanced with the increase in the proportion of polyester-silver nanocomposite fibres, yarn coarseness and increased compactness of knitted fabrics. Yarn count and blend proportion of nanocomposite fibre were found to have very dominant influence in determining the antibacterial properties of knitted fabrics.     

First documentation on status of barley diseases from the high altitude cold arid Trans-Himalayan Ladakh region of India

Cold arid trans-Himalayan Ladakh region of India bordering with Pakistan and China is one of most elevated inhabited regions of the world. This region is highly vulnerable to climate change and serious environmental threats resulting in reduction in crop productivity due to risk of agricultural pest and plant pathogens. The present work describes the various diseases attacking barley from this region where the status of barley diseases has not yet been explored. Extensive field surveys were conducted for the first time during 2004-2005 and 475 fields were inspected at the 95 locations. Yellow rust, powdery mildew, leaf spot blotch/blight, covered smut, loose smut, foot/root rot and cereal cyst nematode causing molya disease were encountered during the survey. However, yellow rust, molya and foot/root rot were found as the most destructive diseases. Excellent hotspots of the encountered diseases were identified and marked which may be used for the screening of barley genotypes and determining the impact of climate change on plant diseases.     

Characterization of a Novel Gain-of-Function Spotted-Leaf Mutant with Enhanced Disease Resistance in Rice

We here reported the identification and characterization of a novel gain-of-function spotted-leaf 26(Spl26) mutant from an ethylmethylsulfone(EMS)-induced rice cultivar IR64. Spl26 displayed reddishbrown lesions that firstly appeared on the leaf tips at the early tillering stage and spread gradually downward to cover the whole leaf blades that wilted subsequently. The lesion development was lightdependent under natural conditions. Spl26 exhibited impaired photosynthetic capacity with decreased chlorophyll content and lowered photosynthetic parameters which ultimately led to the poor performance of agronomic traits. Severe cell death occurred in Spl26 in accompany with increased malonaldehyde level and membrane ion leakage rate, elevated reactive oxygen species(ROS) accumulation, altered ROS scavenging activities, increased DNA fragmentation and decreased soluble protein levels. Defense responses were activated in Spl26 with enhanced resistance to rice bacterial blight, up-regulation of defense response genes and altered endogenous hormone levels. The spotted-leaf phenotype is controlled by a single dominant nuclear gene localized to a 305 kb region between RM5490 and In Del42 on the short arm of chromosome 7. The data suggested that Spl26 is a novel gain-of-function spotted-leaf mutant with enhanced bacterial disease resistance and immunity-associated premature leaf senescence and would provide the basis for cloning of the target gene.